Ironman Florida Race Recap

Nothing makes me want to race more than thinking I might not be able to. My plans to race Ironman Florida were in serious jeopardy when race week jury duty developed into more of a civic obligation than I expected. The bright side was realizing how awesome my support team is. They had me sure I would be physically and emotionally ready for Plan A, B, C, or D. Start lines and smart advisors are never things to take for granted!

I escaped the courtroom just in time to drive down to Panama City Beach. Driving to a race is another luxury I appreciate as it means I can overpack and I’m likely to see a lot of familiar faces on the race course.

Ironman Florida Sunrise captured by Ernie Janelle

Race morning was full of great surprises: perfect weather, calmer water conditions, and a vuvuzela carrying Dynamo Multisport cheer crew led by friends Betty, Ernie, and Noah! I loved getting so see so many friends on my way to the start. Definitely a huge boost after a season full of mostly solo racing!

Betty and I before the start! GO GREEN!

The Swim

Even though the water had calmed down significantly from the craziness of the previous day, the Gulf was far from flat. I charged into the waves, only to be faced with a moment of panic when I wasn’t sure I’d make it through the waves breaking just off shore. I may be a decent swimmer, but I’m no match for mother nature!

Eventually I made it through the breakers and swam hard, trying to put as much time as possible between me and the rest of women’s pro field. The resumes in the group were nuts and included the reigning World Champion and several other top finishers. With those kinds of athletes chasing me, I needed the biggest lead I could get!

Headed back in for round 2! Thanks to Jen and John Ridgely for the pic!

I made it through the first loop without too much trouble and I loved body surfing toward the shore. The second time through the breakers was much easier, but my clean water swimming was short lived as I started to catch the back end of the age group race.

I maneuvered my way through the sea of green and pink caps just praying I didn’t take anyone out, especially since the waves were bringing me in really fast and a lot of people were walking on the sandbar 200 meters off shore. It felt more like an obstacle race than a triathlon, and I was very happy when I hit dry sand without hurting anyone!

The Bike

I took off on the bike hoping to hold on to my lead as long as possible. The Ironman Florida bike course is a giant loop with only a couple turns and two short out-and-backs. The road conditions are pretty good with the exception of one bumpy section near halfway. The hills are few and far between, with the biggest change in elevation coming from the bridge just ten miles into the race. This course was built for SPEED!

Another amazing race pic from TriJuice.com!!!

I was riding super focused and nearly missed a turn around mile 40. Luckily the GREEN Dynamo Cheer crew was going crazy at the corner and that caught my attention! Shortly after the turn the Dutch rocket (and eventual race champion) Yvonne VanVlerken shot past me with the nicest compliment:

YVONNE: You’re a fish! You put ten minutes into me on the swim!

Had I not been caught so off guard I might have pointed out she’d just gained 10 minutes on me in less than 50 miles of biking, but I was too busy smiling! Is it wrong that getting passed made my day?

Palm trees? I don’t remember palm trees! Great pic Ramon!

My ride was good for me, but near perfect conditions meant everyone’s times were crazy fast and I think came off the bike near 15th place. A little discouraging to have fallen so far, but it meant I had nothing to lose on the run!

The Run

The Ironman Florida run course is PERFECT for me. Two loops of flat, Flat, FLAT. I love flat running. I started at a strong pace and the miles were flying by. I’d passed a couple girls in the first few miles, and as I neared the turn-around, I was actually surprised to see how close I was to the top five.

Little did I know I was in for an even BIGGER surprise! I knew I was running fast, but I’m not sure I realized just how fast. Probably a little too fast for me, this year anyway. Just past half way, I paid for that early pace in a BIG way:

Run-splosion!! If it hadn’t been for all the cheers on the course I might still be slogging down Thomas Dr. right now! But the “GO HALEY”s coming from the Dynamo, Atlanta, and generally awesome triathlon community got me through my major blow-up and across my 12th Ironman finish line in 13th place! Just in time for the off-season! Thank goodness!

Stats

Swim: 50:29

Bike: 4:57:03

Run: 3:25:59

Total: 9:19:24, 13th place PRO female

THANK YOU!

Run-splosion and all, Ironman Florida was one of my favorite races this year. The race was extremely well run with excellent volunteer support. And the cheer crowds were just downright awesome!

Thank you to Coach Matthew Rose. As if three Ironmans in 10 weeks wasn’t hard enough, I had to spice it up with some jury duty! Thanks for getting me through it all!! What a year!!!

Thanks and BIG Congratulations to the very dynamic Dynamo Masters swim coach, Maria Thrash on her own amazing Ironman Florida finish! Way to go Maria! You’re an Ironman!!

Coach Maria crushing the IMFL run course!

Big thank you to my sponsors!

Thank you to all of my friends and family and all the supporters near and far! The absolute BEST thing I did down in PCB was head back out on the run course after I finished. My intention was to steal some pizza and beer from the Peak Racing tent, but hours later I just couldn’t stop cheering! I know I’m not that far removed from the age group ranks, but I’m still inspired by the thousands of people with full-time jobs and full-time lives competing in such a hard event! Thanks to all the Ironman competitors everywhere! You all motivate me more than you can ever know and I hope I get to keep cheering for you for years to come!!